Downstream processing of clusters of interconnected food products, including freshly-baked bread products (e.g., dinner rolls), generally relies very significantly on laborers. In many instances, laborers are needed, for example, to inspect food products, to separate food products, or to orient them in preparation for further processing (e.g., packaging). Additionally, laborers are often favored over machines because of their ability to separate clusters of relatively delicate interconnected food products (e.g., dinner rolls) without marring them. However, because multiple cluster configurations (e.g., 8×6, 12×8) are often processed during the course of a single shift, the number of laborers actually required at any given time during the course of a single shift can vary significantly. This results in the following scheduling dilemma: if a sufficient number of laborers are scheduled for a shift, some of them will inevitably not be needed during the processing of those cluster configurations that are less labor intensive.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system that will at least partially mitigate the foregoing problem by automating the process of separating clusters of interconnected food products. There is an additional need for a system that can separate clusters of relatively delicate interconnected food products without marring them, and that can receive and process multiple cluster configurations.